Being a 200's-2010's child, I only knew Adam Lambert as the guy who sang "Whattaya Want From Me." Sometimes the intro to that song would pop into my head and I would use my memory to remember what that song was. I just kept thinking "WHAT is that song?!" I distantly recognized the 2009 pop hit. But finally I looked up Adam Lambert, and suffice it to say I am duly impressed. Even if the Queen fandom is split down the middle, I am impressed. He is the only other man to sing in Queen. He's not Freddie Mercury, but he never tried to be. Even from his American Idol days, it's evident that Adam has a big, theatrical, rock-Broadway-ish style and stage presence.
In the Netflix doc (which I've watched 3 times now, lol!) They talk about how he's not Freddie, but Mercury himself wouldn't want a cheap impersonator. As Roger Taylor said in the doc, "good luck on the cruise ship," with regards to those who think an imitation would be good enough. He also called those same people "fucking unimaginative." According to that movie (The Show Must Go On: The Queen and Adam Lambert Story), Freddie Mercury's last words were "do what you want, just don't make me boring." And Lambert certainly lives up to it. Especially on stage, where he can go all out with costumes, lights, and an amazing crowd. With every chin tilt, every strut, every high note, vocal belt, and of course with that eyeliner, Adam Lambert dares the viewer to compare him to Mercury. But at the same time, he doesn't give a f*ck what you think, and you might not live to tell the tale. I get the feeling he might stomp you in sparkly 3-inch boots while singing "We Will Rock You." Which we all know is the spirit of Queen. Whether you like him or not, he's the guy fronting a legendary rock band when the world thought said band was over.
He did something we never thought would happen-he revived Queen. And he got me listening to Queen. I never thought I would like rock. But since I like Adam Lambert's voice, I'm listening now. And as someone in the movie said: "They come to see Adam Lambert and walk away Queen fans." And in their first performance stateside, -IHeart Radio in Vegas-he was wearing an all-black, low-cut outfit that looked straight up pop star. But the vocals were straight rockstar. I can see how some would think he would try to turn Queen into some sort of pop band-but that's laughable given how much respect Adam has for their legacy. If you watch any interview with him, you can see the respect. On American Idol at some point, he filled in as a judge. Someone sang Queen and said "I sang your song!" Adam interrupts, saying "It's not my song!" And in The Show Must Go On, he says "I'm filling in for this god." Even though he's been compared in the comments section to Prince, Elvis, George Michael, and Freddie himself, and he's good enough to be the lead singer of Queen-he's a modern, current rock god in and of himself. And a pop god, credit to his solo music.
I think "The Last Rockstar" would be a good title for this man's biopic. Because who's gonna come after him? Not anybody I know of. He really can sing with the best of them. This is fact. And in fact, they were gonna do a Bohemian Rhapsody sequel with him, but he thought that would be weird. The man is still so humble! He can perform the Queen classics in a fresh way in front of thousands and thousands, but he's still so humble. He still says 'I'm just here to sing, I'm not trying to replace Freddie.' He's his own man and he definitely knows it. Even though he can't be credited with writing the classics, he can perform them damn well. Even though they're not his songs from his pen, there is no doubt that Queen + Adam Lambert is spectacular. Joe Jonas has a quote from The Show Must Go On that I really like: "You're not seeing a cover band. You're seeing Queen." Complete with great vocals. No mediocrity there, even though he is the second lead singer. So to my friend who tried to say Adam Lambert is "no Freddie Mercury, though," Adam's reponse to that very thing is "NO SHIT." Hahahaha! Yes, there is a clip of him actually saying that during a live performance!
Now I wanna write about the legacy: Brian and Roger of OG Queen have stated that if it weren't for Adam being such a perfect fit for them, they would have just faded. Hard to imagine Queen fading, but that's what was about to happen. They couldn't find a singer who could sing all the songs the way they needed to be sung. They were gonna disappear. Then they met this kid on American Idol, after he slayed "Whole Lotta Love" by Zeppelin. The keyboardist of Queen saw him and he said "We have to check this guy out." So they performed with him on the American Idol finale, and that's when it clicked in. So now, you have a world tour, 2 films, a live album, all thanks to the fact that Adam Lambert gave Queen "a blood transfusion," in May's words. And that live album! Adam said that the songs were recorded live, as he sang, and they sound really, really stunning. He's a different voice than Freddie, and good thing too. It's a good thing for the band, for the legacy . I mean, honestly, my jaw dropped sometimes when I was listening to the album. And I think Adam's age and relevance and American-ness helped bring back Queen. The way I introduced him to my friends was this:
"You know the guy who sang Whattaya Want From Me? He's in Queen now!" And we watched the Vegas performance on my phone.
I'm 19, and so are my friends. We were all born in the early 2000's. So we heard some pop classics. Whattaya Want From Me is definitely on that list. But the way he bridged the gap with the young and old-radio pop with Queen rock-that's crazy. That is a phenomenon. I honestly wonder if they should shorten the band name to just Queen now. Not Queen + Adam Lambert. But I guess that would confuse people. But it would be deserving anyway.
Oh, and by the way: Adam Lambert was in Bohemian Rhapsody. As a trucker that Rami Malek's Freddie Mercury hooked up with. I bring it up because that cements that Adam is part of Queen's legacy now. He was in the biopic! Not as himself, sure, but the fact that he was involved undoubtedly validated his place in the Queen canon. I can't emphasize enough that even if you don't like this guy, respect the fact that he is the ONLY other man to be able to sing ALL of the Queen songs the way they should be sung! He doesn't sing a certain subset of the ones that suit his voice, he sings all of them cause he can sing all of them. And I'm not gonna be one of those Redditor types who complains and compares. My verdict is this: He's who my generation got. Take it or leave it, but you'd be missing out if you refuse to listen to Queen + Adam Lambert. Adam Lambert can at least be credited with bringing Queen to the younger generations, which is no small feat. And since he's been compared to George Michael, Elvis, and Freddie Mercury himself (and that he really is the current front man of Queen!!) , would Adam's name ever get on the "best rock singers" list? Probably.
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